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Supreme Court — Part 22
Page 9
9 / 55
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/DAVID LAWRENC
President Eisenhower unwit-
tingly opened a Pandora's box
when he urged the conference
of Governors to assert the
rights of the States, He said:
“Never, under our constitu-
tional system, could the Na-
tonal Government have si-
phoned away State authority
without the neglect, acquie-
' seence, or unthinking co-opera~
tion of the States themselves.”
But the question now being
asked is how can the States
today assert thelr. rights if the
Supreme Court of the United
States can pass “laws or adopt
“legislation” that takes away
from the States the rights they
always thought they had un-
der the Constitution? .
This ‘Capital today has in it
many officials and legislators
who are angry over the latest
Supreme Court decislonst—and
many of them are in the ad-
ministration itself, The Prest-
ent shows an outward clam
and urges respect for the court
as an institution. He said,
however, with remarkable re-
straint to his press conference
this week that “possibly in their
latest series of decisions, there
are some that each of us has
Nei great trouble understand-
g.”* x
The Supreme Court. hes ren-
‘dered decisions which many
Officials beleve will endanger
the security of the Nation and
make it easier for Communists
to infiltrate the American
Government. Likewise, many
officials believe the States have
been rendered powerless to
carry on effective law enforce-
ment against criminals,
Rarely has there been such
a sense of frustration in Gov-
ernment as there is today as
the Supreme Court goes on
eleasing Communists as we
various types of criminals
including a confessed rapis
A jon technical grounds deseri
- Conveniently as “individ
_e a
"| Supreme Court ; t and.
Tribunal Viewed as Taking Away {
Powers of the Commonwealths
bc, ee
>
G
rights.” The idea that soclety
as a whole needs protection
against traitors and crooks is
brushed aside, and the “indl-.
vidual right” is ruled to be
supreme, -
Congress is told by the Su-
preme Court that its investi-
gating committees herealter
cannot punish the refussl by -
a witness to answer questions,
even if the Fifth Amendment
isn’t invoked. The edict also ts
issued by the Supreme Court
that free speech includes the
right to preach forcible over-
throw of the Government and
that, only when the conspiracy
is well under way and there ts
an actual step taken to over-
throw the Government, can
effective steps be taken te pro-
tect the Nation.
Naturally, this type of rea-
soning doesn’t sit well with
Congress, though here end
there are so-called “liberals”,
who are rejoicing over the .
decisions.
The FSI and police agencies
of States and cities, moreover,
are worried. For the Supreme
Court says detectives’ reports
about any witness that the
defendant’s counsel asks for
must be made public, or the
right of the prosecuting at-
torney to use the witness must
be forfeited.” The difficulties
this introduces for the law-
enforcement agencies of the
country are incalculable.
Congress doesn’t know now
how to proceed ‘th its in-
vestigations on any subject.
For the court has said ques-
tions directed to a witness
must be phrased with the
same explicitness and clarity
as is required in a law court.
The witness must be told Just
what the purpose of any ques-
tion is before an answer need
, be made and then, if the wit-
hess chooses, he can regard |
the question as not “pertine nt”
to the “tegistative purpose.”
63 JUL 5 “95m NTALED
fe Re ee
a a
at RT ve ns
the States » pce
nea Et my:
This ts 0 virtual sabotage of
congressional procedures: But :
it is algo a crippling blow-to |
investigating committees - of
State legislatures, cities and
counties,
|
The Supreme Court has |
certainly taken away many
other powers of the States in
the last few years. Thus, the
court feels it has authority
now to say how schools shalj
operated, ‘how pupils shall |
Parents what to do about —
be assigned, how admission
requirements shall be written,
and to pass upon what parents
of children in a community
may say in urging other
their children’s attendance at
certain schools, This amounts -
to virtually complete regule-
tion of the schools under the :
jurisdiction of the Supreme
Court. This power Is one the
States for generations
erat of South Carolina,
a direct solution. He has
troduced legislation to de-
fine the appellate jurisdiction
of the Supreme Court. The
Constitution gives that power
to Congress. A law which says
whet Federal statutes may be
thought was reserved to te .
- Senator Thurmond, De
- appealed to the high court and
what actions by the supreme -
tribunals of the States can
be accepted for appeal to the
Supreme Court of the United
States would be constitutional.
Tt has been tried for brief
Periods before in American
history.
This isn't the whole answer,
but the moverient to curb the
Supreme Court is growing.
Bills to provide for recon-
firmation of Supreme Court
justices by the Senate after
four years of service, bills to
provide for selection of only
lawyers of qualified experience,
and bills with other limita-
tions are being introduced in
Congress {n a general revulsion
of feeling against what -
mond calls “judicial tyr "
and “judictal usurpation.#}
(Reproduction Furbts Rever H
NR i 8
(22 -
44 juL 3 1957
“4 ae a
——
le ar rEnIDED
Tol son
Nichols
Boardman
Belmone
Mason
Mohr
Parsons
Roses
Tame
Nease
Vinterrowd
Tele. Room
Holloman
Gandy
21
N.Y. Journal
American
N. Y¥. Times
Wash. Post and
Times Herald
Wash, News —__.__”
Wash. Star _#%
N.Y. Herald :
Tribune
N.Y. Mitror
N.Y. Daily News —_ .
Daily Worker
The Worker
New Leader,
Date
tt
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